Drawing The Line - 4

The days have been quite mild here in California. It was down into the fifties a last week, but for the last couple of days it has been in the high seventies. Even at night it has not dipped very far into the fifties. But be that as it may, I have to think of the bitter days ahead when I reach the far North with my Line Around The World. For that is the way I have chosen. I will go North at the intersection. That way I can visit my friends.

Come to think of it, circling the world North and South is easier. All except the polar regions should be a piece of cake. The polar regions will be a problem, not least because of the long nights during the winter. So, I figured I had better test out how well the Line would show up in pictures at night. With two rolls of tape prepared, I headed out into the deep night and walked the 1,100 feet to where last Line segment ended.

From there at the intersection I turned North.

Looking back at the end of the 9^th roll of tape it is possible to see the Line on the sidewalk.

Adding another roll to the Line and we are well past the gas station on the corner.

There will be obstacles along the way, but the Line handled this one easily.

I also wanted to test out a larger backpack to see how well I could pack back a long line segment. It worked perfectly.

After collecting the Line, I stopped in at the gas station to purchase a supply of Pink Popcorn. I had noticed they had it when I had asked if I could cut across the station's property to make more progress. The day time guy said no, so I had to take the long way round.

Anyway, I fell to talking with the attendant there. My wife and I wave to him when we come back from our evening walks. His name is Abraham. He has been in the United States since 1984. He is originally from a part of Ethiopia which is now Eritrea. He left there before independence and seemed to think that conditions were better there now. I asked if he ever thought of going back. “No,” he replied. “But it is hard here now. Ever since those crazies on 9/11, it has been bad.”

He asked where I was from. I'm not use to being asked that, having been born and raised in the US. “You look Dutch,” he said. Yikes, I can't put my finger on just why I felt a flood of emotion at that crack. Not one to throw cold water on a conversation, I just answered, Oh, mainly Irish and English I guess."

Then he asked why I was fooling around with the paper tape. "It's Art," I replied knowing that the real explaination would confuse both of us. "Oh, I see," he replied.

So that is my new line about my Line. It is Art.

Anyway, it occurred to me that just being out and about in the Silicon Valley, I was really already seeing quite a bit of the world.

Jonathan